Family Euphorbiaceae
Soro-soro
Euphorbia nerifolia Linn.
COMMON MILK HEDGE


 Other scientific names  Common names   
Euphorbia ligularia Roxb.  Bait (Tag.)   Sudusudu (Bis.)
Euphorbia pentagona Blanco Karimbuaya (Ilk.)  Hedge euphorbia (Engl.)  
Euphorbia trigona Merr. Sorog-sorog (Tag.)   Common milk hedge (Engl.) 
  Soro-soro (Tag.) Indian spurgetree (Engl.)
    Oleander-leaved euporbia  (Engl.) 

Botany
Erect, shrubby, branched, fleshy, cactus-like plant growing to 2-4 meters. Trunk and older branches are grayinsh and cylindric; medium branches slightly twisted and stout, fleshy, 4- or 5-angled or winged. Leavers are fleshy, oblong-obovate, 5 to 15 cm long; in young plants, longer pointed or blunt at the tip.. Stems are spiny. Flowers are solitary and short, yellow or green.

Distribution
Cultivated in gardens as a hedge plant.

Properties and constituents
Pugrative, rubefacient, expectorant.
Studies have yielded euphorbon, resin, gun caoutchouc, malate of calcium, among others.
Leaves considered diuretic.
Latex considered purgative, diuretic, vermifuge and antiasthma.

Parts used
Leaves, roots and latex.

Uses
Folkloric
Roots have been used for snake bites.
Fluid from roasted leaves used for earache.
The milky juice used for asthma, cough, earahce. Also, used as an insecticide.
Externally, applied to sores, cysts, warts, and calluses.
Juice mixed with tumeric powder used for hemorrhoids.
By mouth, it is a drastic purgative.
For internal use: decoction or infusion of 10 grams for 1 liter of water, 2-3 cups daily.
Juice of leaves used for spasmodic asthma.
In India, used for bronchitis, tumors, leukoderma, piles, inflammation, fever, earaches, anemia and ulcers.
In Malaya, used for earache.
In French Guiana, leaves are heated, squeezed, and the salted sap used for wheezing in babies, colds and stomach upsets. Also used for infected nails, fevers, coughs and diabetes in NW Guyana. source

Studies
Anesthetic Activity: Both the alcoholic and aqueous extracts from the fresh stem of E nerifolia revealed significant anesthetic activity on intradermal wheal in guinea-pig and foot-withdrawal reflex in frog.
Radioprotective / Cytotoxic: Study isolated Euphol from the triterpenoidal sapogenin fraction of E nerifolia leaf which exerted moderate antioxidant activity with highly significant reduction of gamma radiation-induced chromosomal aberrations. It also showed cytotoxic activity on melanoma cell lines. Results provide scientific basis for claimed anticarcinogenic use.
Wound Healing: In a research for wound healing drugs, E nerifolia was one of the Ayurvedic medicinal plantsfrom Ayurvedic medicinal plants found to be effective in animal models.
Triterpene: Study isolated a new triterpene from the leaves and stems of Euphorbia nerifolia – glut-5(10)-en-1-one.

Availability
Wild-crafted. 


Additional Sources and Suggested Readings
(1)
PRELIMINARY STUDY OF LOCAL ANAESTHETIC ACTIVITY OF EUPHORBIA NERIFOLIA LINN. / L C Lahon et al / Ind. J Pharmac., 11 (3), 239-240 (1979)
(2)
Radioprotective and In-Vitro Cytotoxic Sapogenin from Euphorbia neriifolia (Euphorbiaceae) Leaf / Papiya Bigoniya and Avtar Chand Rana / Tropical Journal of Pharmaceutical Research, December 2009; 8 (6): 521-530
(3)
Plant Medicines of Indian Origin for Wound Healing Activity: A Review / Tuhin Kanti Biswas et al / The International Journal of Lower Extremity Wounds, Vol. 2, No. 1, 25-39 (2003) / DOI: 10.1177/1534734603002001006
(4)
Crystalline constituents from euphorbiaceae—XIII : The structure of a new triterpene from Euphorbia nerifolia L. / A S R Anjeneyulu et al / Tetrahedron • Volume 29, Issue 23, 1973, Pages 3909-3914 /
doi:10.1016/0040-4020(73)80214-5


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